Comedy Stage Hypnosis Review

No part of this lesson is meant to be demeaning to the hypnotist or imply a poor quality show. This is simply one hypnotist reviewing & critiquing the approach and tactics of another hypnotist. Additionally, neither I nor any parties affiliated with HypnoKick claim any legal rights to the footage taken from this individual: Full Show.

***CRITIQUE***

1) From the very beginning, as the hypnotist requests those in the chairs to get comfortable/relaxed/loose/prepared for the performance, I realize he either (1) had people volunteer themselves or (2) picked random individuals to take part. While I used to do these same things, as I now describe in HypnoKick’s Stage Hypnosis Training, this often leads to a few psychologically negative assumptions. If picking people, those not picked will wonder why they weren’t chosen for this amazing experience, if people volunteer themselves and end up going back to the audience, they leave thinking they “can’t be hypnotized”. In either case, you want to avoid either of those thought processes (or others). That’s why I now teach students (and often consult my colleagues) to both combine my “New-Age” approach after their pre-talk as well as implement my 2-in-1 formula to ensure you avoid getting hecklers on stage.

2) Regardless of how you plan to obtain your volunteers, you always want to make sure to lay out the safety precautions & legalities to clear yourself of any possible lawsuits. The longer I’ve stayed in this field, the more stories I’ve heard of hypnotists (or people using hypnosis) getting sued. With certain Hollywood movies already misleading the public’s perception, the last thing we want is for an uninformed volunteer to become upset with us to the point of taking us to court. Additionally, as part of your pre-talk, mentioning reasons why people may not experience hypnosis (and that it’s normal) is a good call. While avoiding lawsuits is favorable, we also want to avoid making people feel “not good enough” if they’re unable to enjoy the experience. After years of touring, many have approached me claiming their inability to be hypnotized. All because the last hypnotist they saw didn’t use them for their show or misinformed the individual. I always make sure to now inform those who don’t make it on stage that they still experienced basic hypnosis (aka relaxation) and for those who didn’t even try taking part, they’ll experience it when they’re ready.

3) Actually inducing (hypnotizing) your audiences goes back to #1 of this blog. Since steering away from the classics and implementing a room-wide approach, I’ve found my induction process enables me to accomplish a few things simultaneously. First and foremost, I’m able to spot out what individuals are easiest to hypnotize. Second, out of those people, I’m able to see who has the fastest/biggest reactions (as these are often somnambulists). This leads into the third point, which (after still accepting hecklers on stage that played along) helps filter out the hecklers in each venue. As a result, the people who end up on your stage are much more likely to stay and fully enjoy their experience (versus temporarily interrupting the show to “kick them off” (never fun)). I also prefer this method to having anyone stare at anything bright. While I understand the idea of straining people’s eyes to influence them to close them (therefore relaxing their mind/body naturally), I prefer a less strenuous route!

4) This hypnotist’s pre-talk & induction process takes a bit of time (a little more than 25% of the hour he was likely hired for). When clients hire you (and when people visit your show in general), they’re ultimately looking for fun. They want to laugh and enjoy what their peers do on stage (hence “Comedy Stage Hypnosis”). For this specific reason, I do my best to keep both my introductory pre-talk AND induction to around 10 minutes long (15 at most). This helps ensure you have more time to perform more comedy skits and routines. The more comedy you’re able to incorporate, the more fun volunteers and viewers alike will have. These routines (in combination with the overall experience you provide) will greatly influence whether or not you’re hired back. So, try to keep your pre-talk and induction short/concise, obtain the best volunteers & get the show on the road.

5) Another aspect of the hypnotist’s induction that caught me off guard was his volume. Just like listening to calm/meditation music will help calm the mind and up beat music will help you work out, this hypnotist goes in reverse (which you can hear shocks students in the audience). While rather monotone in his introduction and preparation for the show, when he decides to start hypnotizing students his voice gets really loud. Frankly, if I had been one of the volunteers, that would have immediately brought me out of trying to relax. I do my best to start my shows with an upbeat attitude and tone and, as I get into the actual show, lower my volume/tone to help ease the minds of my volunteers.

6) I give this hypnotist props for incorporating audience interaction. I’ve found, in manner forms, having hypnotized volunteers interaction with their audience of peers helps personalize everyone’s experience. As far as why some of these interactions occur, the routines both on and off the stage area are (in my opinion) cliche. From the classic stinky fart/person routine to the baby skit, few seem original. My initial guess is that he’s doing his best to keep the show as G or PG as possible. Still, there are ways to host new (if not slightly more creative) routines. Considering your routines are one of the main reasons your clients hire you and their guests show up, it will only benefit you to either revamp classic routines or manifest your own (venue appropriate) skits. With just a little imagination and market research, it’s easy to develop a new reason why there’s a baby for the hypnotized volunteers to interact with. Example: one of the other really popular comedy hypnosis routines is making someone either speak alien or become an alien translator. So, you could appoint a volunteer as an alien. translator that could easily interpret whatever this hypothetical baby is whining about/trying to communicate. I literally made that up as I typed this (consider that your free routine creation consultation for the week 😉 ).

7) There are also some points where all but one person in the chairs is put back under hypnosis. At that point, the hypnotist simply walks over and individually puts the person back under. I’d argue to make a moment/routine out of it. Why not build the moment with anticipation for the volunteer and audience alike. Stand with your microphone, stare at them (non-threateningly), slowly walk towards them and do something interesting. Maybe perform the No Touch induction. Consider appointing someone from the audience to become “the hypnoitst” to put the volunteer back under. My point is, like above, be creative/imaginative with it. Make the re-induction into its own little skit. You’re welcome for your 2nd free consultation 😛

Make sure you get safety precautions and legalities out of the way, thoroughly inform your audience what they can expect to experience, control your voice/tone, consider HypnoKick’s approach to stage hypnosis versus the cliche (classic) method & try being as originally entertaining as possible.

What did you think about this hypnotist’s performance? Would you have done anything different, if so what/why? Answer in the comments below to let me know 🙂